Combination towel and wrap dispenser



July 5, 1960 F. DVORACEK COMBINATION TOWEL AND WRAP DISPENSER Filed Feb. 2o, 1959 INVENTOR.

FQA NK D VORA 65K By f//s ATTORNEY HAe/e/s, K 15CH, RUSSELL KERN United States Patent() 7 COMBINATION TOWEL AND WRAP DISPENSER Frank Dvoracek, Burbank, Calif., assignor to Burroughs Manufacturing Corp., Los Angeles, Calif., a corporation of California Filed Feb. 20, 1959, Ser. No. 794,554

6 Claims. (Cl. 225-38) The present invention relates generally to the container art and more particularly to a novel combination towel and wrap dispenser.

Brieiiy stated, the device includes a cabinet for supporting a roll of towel material in dispensing position, and which is provided with a pivotally mounted cover member. Flange-like means are provided within the cabinet for freely supporting the roll of towel material so that it does no-t engage the cover member or the front wall of the cabinet. A tray is removably fastened below the cabinet in sliding supporting engagement therewith and contains means for supporting at least one roll of wrapping material in dispensing position. Stop means and locking means are ,provided for limiting the rearward movement of the `tray relative to the cabinet and for also releasably interconnecting the tray with the cabinet to prevent the tray from being unintentionally removed.

Although various types of towel dispensers and wrapping material dispensers have been manufactured from time to time, most of them have not been completely satisfactory because they did not contain means for dispensing both towels and wrapping material, or, if they did, the two types of materials lwere not equally readily accessible or the supply of materials in the dispenser could not be easily replenished.

Itis an object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a novel combination towel and wrap dispenser for supporting both paper towel material `and wrapping material in readily accessible positions. More particularly, it is an object to provide such a device from which towel material and wrapping material can be removed with equal convenience.

Another object is to provide a novel combination towel and -wrap dispenser which can be easily and quickly replenished with a new supply of towel and wrapping rnaterial in roll form. More particularly, it is an object to provide such a device which includes means for sup porting rolled towel material and rolled wrapping material in dispensing positions without having to position them on rollers or support them between socket-like means.

A further object is to provide such a combination towel and wrap dispenser which includes a tray for receiving rolled wrapping material and which cannot be unintentionally removed from the assembly, as for example when a sheet of wrapping material is being severed from the roll.

' Yet another object is to provide such a device which is relatively simple in design, yet rugged in construction, and which is relatively inexpensive to manufacture.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent from the following `detailed description, reference being had to the accompanying drawing wherein a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown.

In the drawing:

Fig. vl is a perspective view cfa novel combination towel and wrap dispenser constructed in accordance with ;he teachings of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken on Fig. 4 is a bottom plan view of the wrap dispensing tray.

Referring to the drawing more particularly by reference numerals, 1i) indicates generally a combination towel and wrap dispenser embodying the teachings of the present invention, which dispenser is preferably made 4from plastic material for reasons of economy. The device includes a towel dispenser cabinet 12 and a wrap supported by the cabinet 12.

The cabinet 12 includes spaced-apart side walls 16 and 18, a back wall 20, atop wall 2,2, a bottom wall 24, and a short front wall 26 (Fig. 3) which extends upwardly from the front edge of the bottom wall. The front wall contains an upper edge 2S which is serrated for a purpose to appear.

As shown in Figs. l and 2, the side walls contain grooves 2S in the inner -faces thereof which extend in a horizontal direction from the back wall to adjacent thecenter of the side walls and which terminate in sockets 3l?. Pivotally mounted within the cabinet 12 is a cover member 3K2 which contains side trunnion members 34 which are disposed in the sockets 30, and which permit the cover member 32 to be pivoted between an open position in which the interior of the cabinet is exposed, and a closed or operative position as shown in Fig. l. The lower front edge of the cover member 32 is in the form of a channel which functions as a handle 36 for the cover, and also provides an inner groove which contains an angle member 3-8 having a serrated lower edge l0 for overlapping engagement with the serrated edge 28 of the front wall of the cabinet.

Extending upwardly from the bottom wall 24 adjacent to the side walls 16 and 18 are two positioning anges 42 which center a roll of towel material T within the cabinet and prevent it from obstructing the movement of the cover 32. A series of spaced roll-supporting ridges 44 (Fig. 3) of arcuate shape also extend upwardly from the bottom wall 24 adjacent to the front wall 26. These support the towel roll T in the manner shown in Fig. 3 so as to prevent it from contacting the serrated edge 28. A short flange-like stop member 45 depends from the bottom wall 24 adjacent the front of the cabinet,v

for engagement with the tray 14 to limit its inward movement, as will be described more fully hereinafter.

As best shown in Fig. l, the top wall 22 is bounded by a rear ange 46, opposed side lianges 48, and Ia front flange 50 which provide a partially enclosed shelf for storing small items such as condiments and the like. Spaced openings 52 are contained in the rear flange 46 for use in fastening the device to a support, as will be described more fully hereinafter. The rear wall 20 (Fig. 2) also contains a plurality o-f openings 54 for use in fastening the device to a support, as well as a short de pending ange member 56 which contains spaced openings 53 which are accessible from the front of the device when the tray 14 is removed.

As shown in Fig. 2, the bottom wall 24 extends outwardly on each side -beyond the side walls 16 and 18 and then extends downwardly and inwardly to provide opposed, inwardly facing channels 60 and 61 which` have bottom flange portions or rails 62 and 63, respectively. These bottom flange portions or rails terminate short of the rear wall 20 of the cabinet 10 (Fig. 3) for a purpose to appear.

|The wrap dispenser tray 14 includes opposed side walls 64 and 66, a front wall 68, a back wall 70, and a bottom Patented July 5, 1960l dispenser tray 14t wall 72. As shown in Fig. 2, an elongated notch 73 is formed in the upper edge of the rear wall 70 so as not to interfere with the depending flange member 56 of the cabinet. Supporting anges 74 and 76 (Fig. 2) extend outwardly 'from adjacent the upper edges of the side walls 64 and I66, respectively, for sliding supporting engagement with theVV channels 60 andv 61. The flanges 74 and 76 contain shoulders 78 and 8d (Fig. 4), respectively, which engage the rear ends of the bottom iiange portions or rails 62 and y63, respectively, so as to prevent the tray 14 from being unintentionally disengaged from the cabinet 12. Consequently, in order to remove `the tray 14, it `is necessary to lift it upwardly relative to the flange portions 62 and 163 so as to disengage the shoulders 78 and' 80 from the rear ends thereof.

A partition wall 82 (Fig. 3) extends transversely between the side walls 64 and 66 of the tray so as to divide it into a front compartment for receiving a roll of wrapping material W-l, and a rear compartment for receiving a second roll of wrapping material W42. A first transversely extending slot 84 is formed in the bottom wall 72 within the front compartment and yadjacent the front wall 68 thereof, and a second slot 85 is formed in the bottom wall within the rear compartment and adjacent the partition wall 82. As shown in Fig. 4, the slot 84 contains an enlarged hand opening 86 land the slot 85 contains a similarly located enlarged hand opening 87. Depending from the bottom wall adjacent the forward edges of the slots 84 and 85 are ange members 88 and 90, respectively, which have serrated lower edges for use in severing sheets of Wrapping material from the rolls contained within the front and rear compartments of the tray. A short handle member 92 also depends from the bottom wall 72 adjacent the rear wall 70 (Fig. 3).

As shown best in Fig. 2, the cabinet 12r can be mounted on -a flat vertical surface such as a wall by conventional fastening means which extend through any of the sets of openings 52, 54, and 58. The openings 52 are always exposed, and the openings 58 are accessible by removing the tray 14, as previously mentioned.

The roll of paper towel material T is maintained in centered position within the cabinet 12 by means of the flanges 42, and is supported out of engagement with the serrated edge 28 of the front wall by means of the arcuate ridges 44. When it is desired to remove a section of towel material from the roll T, the cover member 32 is pivoted upwardly by means of the handle 36 and a section of the towel. material is pulled from off the roll T so as to extend over the serrated edge 28. The cover member 32 is then closed and held down by means of the handle 36 with the serrated edge 40 overlapping the edge 28, and the section of towel material is then severed from the roll by pulling upwardly on it, starting at one side edge.

To remove the tray 14, the operator grasps the handle member 92, lifts upwardly so as to disengage the shoulders 78 and 80 from the ends of the flange portions or rail members 62 land 63. This permits the supporting flanges 74 `and 76 to slide forwardly in the channels 60 and 61, respectively, so as to expose the interior of the tray to permit replacement of the wrapping material within the front and rear compartments contained therein. To return the tray to the closed position, -it is pushed rearwardly until the shoulders 78 and 80 drop over the ends of the flange portions or rails 62 and 63 previously described, and the front wall 68 of the tray engages the depending stop member 45.

As shown in Fig. 3, the ends of the sheets of rolled wrapping material W-1 and W-Z extend downwardly through the slots 84 and 85, respectively. However, if the material does not extend through the slots 84 and 85, the operator can easily reach his hand up through the openings 86 and 87 and grasp the ends of the sheet material. To sever -a section of material from the roll W-I for example, the depending free end thereof is pulled downwardly to expose the desired section of material, and is then lifted upwardly and forwardly so as to engage the material with the serrated edge 88. The section of material is then severed from the roll by a sideways tearing movement across the edge 88. As mentioned hereinabove, the tray 14 cannot be removed without rst disengaging the shoulders 78 and 80 from the endsof the flange` portions' or' rails 62 or 63, respectively. This prevents the tray from being unintentionally removed, as' might occur when the sheet of wrapping material is pulled forwardly during the severing operation.

Thus it will be vapparent that there has been provided a novel combination towel and wrap dispenser which fulfills all of the objects and advantages sought therefor. A roll of towel material and two rolls of wrapping material are supported together in a single dispensing unit in readily 4accessible positions. Also, the material can be easily and quickly replenished by merely dropping the rolls into the various compartments, and without having to thread them onto rollers or fasten them between supporting sockets.

Simple stop means are provided for limiting the rearward movement of the tray 14, and locking means -are provided for preventing it from being unintentionally removed from the assembly as for example when tearing off a sheet of Wrapping material.

It is to be understood that the foregoing description and the accompanying drawing have been given only by way of illustration and example, and that changes and alterations in the present disclosure which willy be readily apparent to one skilled in the art are contemplated as within the scope of the present invention which is limited only by the claims which follow.

I claim:

1. A combination towel and wrap dispenser, comprising: a cabinet having spaced side walls, a bottom wall, and a relatively short front wall with an upper edge; ange members extending upwardly from said bottom wall adjacent the side walls for maintaining `a roll of towel material in the cabinet positioned away from said side walls; a plurality of spaced ridges extending upwardly from said bottom wall between the flange members `and adjacent the front wall, the upper surfaces of said ridges maintaining the roll of towel material out of contact with the upper edge of the front wall; means associated with said upper edge for severing a section of towel material from said roll; a tray removably fastened to said cabinet below the bottom wall thereof; and means within the tray for supporting at least one roll of wrapping material in dispensing position.

2. A combination towel and wrap dispenser, comprising: a cabinet which is open at the front and which includes spaced side walls, a bottom wall, and a relatively short front wall having an upper edge; a cover member pivotally mounted within the cabinet on said side walls for movement between a closed position in which it closes olf said opening, and an open positionL in which said opening is unobstructed; flange members extending upwardly from said bottom wall adjacent the side walls for maintaining a roll of towel material within the cabinet positioned away from said side walls; a plurality of spaced ridges extending upwardly from said bottom wall between the flange members and adjacent the front wall, the upper surfaces of said ridges maintaining the roll of towel material out of contact with the upper edge of the front wall; means associated with said upper edge for severing a section of towel material from said roll; a tray removably fastened to said cabinet below the bottom wall thereof; and means within the tray for supporting at least one roll of wrapping material in dispensing position.

3. A combination towel and wrap dispenser, comprising: a cabinet having a bottom wall and opposed side walls; means for supporting a roll of towel material within the cabinet in dispensing position; opposed depending channel members supported by the bottom wall adjacent the side walls; a tray having opposed side walls; flange members extending outwardly from the side walls of the tray adjacent the upper edges thereof for sliding supporting engagement with said channel members; and means within the tray for supporting at least one roll of wrapping material in dispensing position.

4. A combination towel and wrap dispenser, comprising: a cabinet having a bottom wall and opposed side walls; means for supporting a roll of towel material within the cabinet in dispensing position; opposed depending channel members supported by the bottom wall adjacent the side walls, said channel members including bottom rail members which have rear edges; a tray having opposed side walls; liange members extending outwardly from said side walls adjacent the upper edges thereof for sliding supporting engagement with said rail members, said ange members containing shoulders for engagement with the rear edges of the rail members to prevent unintentional removal of the tray; and means within the tray for supporting at least one roll of wrapping material in `dispensing position.

5. A combination towel and wrap dispenser, comprising: a cabinet having a bottom Wall and opposed side walls; means for supporting a roll of towel material within the cabinet in dispensing position; opposed depending channel members supported by the bottom wall adjacent the side walls; a tray having opposed side walls and a front wall; liange members extending from the side walls of the tray for sliding supporting engagement with said channel members; -a ange depending from the bottom wall of the cabinet for engagement with the front wall of the tray to limit the rearward movement thereof; means releasably interconnecting the flange menibers of the tray and the channel members preventing forward movement of the tray rel-ative to the cabinet; and means within the tray for supporting at least one roll of wrapping material in dispensing position.

6. A combination towel 'and wrap dispenser, comprising: a cabinet having a bottom wall; means for supporting a roll of towel material within the cabinet in dispensing position; a tray removably fastened to said cabinet below the bottom wall thereof, said tray including a bottom Wall and opposed side Walls; a partition wall extending transversely of the xtray between the side walls thereof dividing the tray into a front compartment and a rear compartment; transversely extending slots in the bottom wall of the tray in the front and rear compartments; and ange members depend-ing from the bottom wa-ll of the tray adjacent the forward edges of the slots and provided with serrated bottom edges.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,858,086 Saipher Oct. 28, 1958 

